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Sharing Inner Gifts
a family celebration adapted by Betsy Williams
from Family Festivals, Dec. 1983/Jan. 1984
Christmas Beatitude
Blessed are the parents
Who know how big is Christmas - and how small.
Who lead the way to the fireside
Rather than the toy-counter.
Their children will follow them.
Blessed are the parents
Who stop in the midst of the party-going
And the gift-buying and the card-addressing
To hear the simple song of love.
Their children will also hear the music.
Blessed is the family that knows
How big is Christmas-and how small.
Their whole year will shine
With happy memories,
And a zest for living.
-Betty Baker
In the spirit of this poem, here
is a simple celebration for your
family. It is a small ceremony
which combines the wonder of
lit candles slowly illuminating a
darkened room with the joy of
giving and receiving gifts which
cannot be bought or packaged.
You might choose to hold this
ceremony on the winter solstice,
December 21, to honor the ancient
tradition of bringing light
to these days of greatest darkness.
Gather enough candles so that
each person can light one for
every family member. Place the
candles around a darkened
room and ask your family to sit
quietly while you explain the
ceremony as follows:
"Since ancient times people all
over the world have held celebrations this time of year.
December 21 is the winter solstice - the day with the fewest
hours of sunlight. For early peoples
this time was frightening.
They didn't have the scientific
understanding of the seasons
which we have today. Ancient
rites and rituals celebrated the
victory of light over darkness.
Later, light came to symbolize
the triumph of good over evil
and the presence of the divine.
Gift-giving arid merrymaking
were part of these happy celebrations
long before the birth of
Christ. In fact, some scholars
believe that the early Christians
chose this time of year to honor
the birth of Christ because of its
association with these established celebrations.
Tonight we are going to have a
special ceremony to brighten our
lives with candlelight and special gifts for each other which
we cannot buy or even make.
Think of these gifts as "inner
gifts", wishes for each other
which come from our hearts."
Ask each person to take a few
minutes to think about non-physical
gifts they would like to
give each other. Then take
turns lighting a candle while
saying what the gift is.
Encourage ideas which recognize
and honor the unique spirit
within each person. (For my son
who loves caring for animals I
might wish that he always has
a heart filled with care for those
in need.) As each wish is
exchanged the lighted candles
illuminate the room, and the
feeling of true Christmas love is
shared.
Last updated June 12, 2005
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